Senior Specialist: Compliance at Absa Group Limited (Absa)

Job Summary

• To provide complex specialist advice and support in practice formulation and associated best practice improvement tactics; enabling the provision of specialist compliance expertise.

Job Description

Job Purpose 

• To support the Retail Compliance team in managing the Private Banking and Wealth portfolios as the Senior Specialist: Compliance. To operate within a pressurised and high performing environment, to help protect Absa business from regulatory, conduct and reputational risk. To achieve this through overseeing implementation of a fit-for-purpose framework, setting common standards, assessing adherence to standards, giving training and guidance, monitoring the business and providing advice. This requires being at the heart of the business, whilst being independent of the business as a second line of defence, being proactive in anticipating and addressing risks, driving adherence to the Values of the Bank, and being a role model for Compliance across the industry.

Key Accountabilities

Mandatory Responsibilities

• Ability to operate at a leadership level in the business – helping shape and execute the business strategy
• Business Knowledge – of both the products, customer segments and the market
• Commercial, working with business colleagues to solution, turning regulatory compliance into a competitive advantage
• Assertive, with an ability to manage conflict – understands where the regulatory, governance and control line is, and will not cross it
• General understanding of the regulatory landscape
• Some deeper regulatory expertise, that is most relevant to the business and its strategy
• Understanding of good governance and control practices

Retail Business Management

• Support the Head of Compliance through executing the Compliance strategy
• Provide input to enhance the Compliance methodology
• Provide input into the Retail regulatory, conduct and reputation risk environment
• Share knowledge across the Retail business

Compliance Advisory

• Drive the right behaviour, specifically adherence to the Values of the bank, in the business through effective standard setting, advice, training, verification, escalation, reporting and engagement.
• Clearly communicate the role and objectives of Compliance to the business.
• Maintain constructive regular engagement with relevant stakeholders, including business, infrastructure and regulators.
• Provide accurate and timely compliance and regulatory advice to the business as a second line of defence.
• Provide relevant Compliance risk information reporting to management.
• Report and escalate policy and regulatory breaches and conduct or regulatory issues to appropriate stakeholders, which may include business management and regulators.
• Maintain a compliance training plan for the business and ensure effective execution of training, including face-to-face and e-learning.

Deployment of policies.

• Manage new regulatory requirements by evaluating regulations (local and international) identified as relevant to the business and provide an impact analysis relevant to the business. Address impacts, including policy amendments, business notifications and provision of training.
• Keep Business appraised of notifications distributed by the regulator impacting the business.

Stakeholder Management

• Be the point of entry for interactions with each regulator regarding the business.
• Position and communicate compliance policies, requirements and initiatives with the relevant stakeholders
• Actively drive a stakeholder management plan for all compliance and regulatory matters affecting the business
• Liaise with senior executive stakeholders and stakeholder groups

Risk Management

• Be the accountable key regulatory risk owner for the business
• Perform on-going monitoring of the business through stakeholder engagement, compilation and assessment of management information, and tracking and analysis of issues.
• Maintain detailed regulatory risk assessments for the business, identifying all regulations and assessing the regulatory risk.
• Maintain and assess regulatory risk MI for the business.
• Perform effective monthly verification testing on key regulatory risks of the business.
• Review and provide input on the Compliance Risk Review coverage for the business. Review the coverage plan, the scope of each review, and conclusions and final report of each review.
• Assess the overall testing coverage on regulatory risk for the business and address deficiencies.

Governance

• Serve on appropriate risk and governance forums for Compliance
• Report to relevant governance forums with overall conclusions on regulatory risk.

Education and Experience Required

• B-degree with Commerce concentration
• LLB or equivalent qualification preferred
• 5-10 years relevant business/product/channel experience

Knowledge & Skills: (Minimum of 6)

• Deep understanding of the relevant product house/channel.
• Reasonably understands the legislative and regulatory landscape and requirements imposed by the South African regulators, including the South African Reserve Bank/Prudential Authority, Financial Services Conduct Authority, Information Regulator and National Credit Regulator (where relevant)
• Able to analyse, interpret and advise on regulation and legislation
• Engages regulators and industry groups constructively on compliance and regulatory matters
• Understands the core principles of an effective compliance function.
• Understands and is able to implement Compliance governance

Competencies: (Maximum of 8 competencies)

• Problem Solving Leadership
• The ability to analyse- and quickly grasp the implications of a situation, relating data from different sources, critically evaluating and integrating information/facts, and diagnosing a problem.
• Customer Focus
• Extensive understanding of best practices for a customer focused culture and the management of customer experiences.
• Business Acumen
• The ability to understand financial and economic concepts/drivers; to identify, create and/or exploit opportunities.
• Innovation Leadership
• Demonstrates ingenuity and curiosity to do things better and fosters an environment of disruptive thinking and action
• Strategic Capability
• The ability to continuously evaluate and redirect business strategy and value proposition thereby promoting the competitive viability of the organisation.
• Results Orientation
• The ability to set ambitious goals maintain a bias for action, drive delivery and take accountability for the outcome.
• Collaboration and Influencing
• Ability to build an extensive collaborative network amongst different stakeholders within and without the organisation (at the most senior levels) that supports the achievement of business goals
• Inspirational People Leadership
• The ability to build, inspire, and develop teams towards high performance

Education

• Bachelor`s Degrees and Advanced Diplomas: Business, Commerce and Management Studies (Required)